Love Games Above the Dot
by celestialwinters
Summary: How the situation with Eli and Clare in "Love Game" should have gone down.
1. Chapter 1

**I was incredibly inspired to write this after I saw the "Love Game" episode. I actually loved how it played out, but I was just wondering, "What if it went this way instead?" and thus this short little piece was born! This is my first fic, so if it sucks... Please be gentle. :)**

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><p><strong>"<strong>Did three months mean NOTHING to you?" Clare Edwards shrieked. The whole room stilled, as a collective gasp went through it. "Did you just.. flip a switch and erase me from your memory?" She continued screaming at the back of _his_ head.

She didn't even want to think his name.

Not right now.

Not in this moment—a moment that goes against everything she's ever stood for. Being this dramatic? And over a boy, no less?

But, the words continued to spew past her lips despite her sane mind telling her to stop. However at the moment, her not-so-sane mind was fueled by leftover feelings of resentment and bitterness towards this... _person. _This person that she poured her everything into for three months.

This person that couldn't seem to let go of his past.

"It took you a year! A YEAR to get over your ex!" She continued, putting emphasis on each and every word. She paused for a moment, recollecting. Hoping, praying, that this person, this person who'd meant _so_ much to her, would turn around.

"Did you ever love me at all?" She finally murmured in a small voice, almost too quiet to hear.

The room was now so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Uh..." Jake Martin, Clare's current annoyance after her mom invited he and his dad for dinner that night, stuttered, breaking the tension. "And... scene!" He laughed it off, looking around at everyone, then grabbed Clare's arms. "Come on, Clare, let's go," He muttered.

She, close to tears, shoved his hands from her shoulders and walked out the door.

She only made it a few feet past the stairs when she heard footsteps. She rolled her eyes.

"Okay, look Mr. Jake Knight-In-Shining-Armor Martin, I didn't _need_ your help leaving back there, so if you'd just so kindly—"

"Clare." A voice interrupted her spiel and she froze, chills rising on every inch of her skin.

Not Jake. No no no.

Slowly, she turned to face the body that held the achingly familiar voice.

He smirked slightly, the smirk that she missed so much. "Hard for a guy to run very fast with a cane, you know," He said, trying to lighten the situation.

Clare smiled slightly, but then focused her attention on the suddenly very interesting scuff marks on her shoes.

"Come on, that was funny!" He teased. "Guy with a cane, making jokes about running... Nevermind. Not very funny." He trailed off, making an overly dramatic face of disappointment to get her to smile.

That was all it took. Clare erupted in a fit of laughter, letting all the tension and anger flow from her body.

He laughed slightly with her, knowing full-well he had no room to look at her like she was a crazy person.

Finally, her laughter died down, remembering what she'd just done at _Above The Dot_.

She was silently thankful that it was dark so he couldn't see just how red she was turning. "Oh..." She murmured as if the wind was knocked out of her.

"I'm so stupid. So so stupid," She whispered so quietly, she wasn't sure he'd heard. She hoped he had. "And SO incredibly sorry. Gosh, I made such a scene back there..." She murmured the last part mostly to herself, raking her hands through her curly auburn-colored hair.

He hobbled forward slightly, trying not to scare her from her almost trance-like stare at the sidewalk.

"Clare." He murmured. She bit her lip and her electric blue eyes raised to connect with his gentle green ones. "What you said back there... It hurt. Bringing up Julia that way..." He trailed off.

"I know. I know and I realize that now, but—" She started.

He put up a hand. "Please, let me finish," He whispered, looking strained, tired.

She rocked back on her heels, grabbing at the hem of her shirt, and nodded.

"But, Clare, you have to know that I care about you so much more than I ever cared about her. With Julia..." He paused, looking unsure of how to phrase what he was going to say. "She was such a huge part of my life, being my first real girlfriend, my first time... you know," Clare winced at that. Unfortunately, she did know. He hobbled slightly closer.

"And what I thought was my first real love," He hobbled closer yet. So close that she could feel his breath, see the different colored flecks in his deep green eyes. The silence dragged on, only the sounds of their ragged breathing filling the air.

"Until I met you." He finally whispered, pulling her face to his.

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><p><strong>I feel like this is incomplete, but I felt like any ending I would have put there would have been too cheesy and unrealistic. I'd really like it to feel finished so if anyone has ideas they'd like to contribute for improvement, that'd be great! <strong>

:)


	2. Chapter 2

**Just finishing off the ending, making it a little more complete. It just starts off with the last thing Eli said to help it flow better. I hope you guys like it and I didn't completely butcher it by adding more. :/  
><strong>

**Oh and thanks No.1TwiFanpire for suggesting ideas! :)**

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><p>"Until I met you." He finally whispered, pulling her face to his.<p>

"I'm so sorry for everything, Eli." Clare whispered against his perfectly shaped lips.

He put a finger to her lips, "Don't be," He said softly. "I messed up. Julia just had me going a little crazy and I was terrified. I know it's irrational and maybe a little unconventional but..." He trailed off, feeling like he was making excuses for something that isn't really excusable.

"But what about you ISN'T a little unconventional?" Clare teased, finishing his sentence.

He put on a shocked expression, pulling her palm to his chest.

"Ouch, lady! You feel that? That's my heart breaking from your cruel words!" He said, his voice dripping sarcasm, like always.

Clare laughed. "I didn't say I didn't like your unconventional ways."

He smirked. He brought his hand to Clare's beautiful, flawless porcelain face.

The part of her face where his hand touched was burning. She felt like it was on fire, but in the best possible way.

"I..." She whispered, getting caught up in the shady forest-green that was his eyes.

"You...?" He whispered back, not wanting to break the moment.

"I missed you." She blurted, without thinking, then looked away embarrassed.

He smiled his crooked smile, putting his fingers under her chin to make her look back at him. "I missed you too, Blue Eyes. More than anything."

And somehow, suddenly, in the most beautiful way, his lips were softly pushing against hers.

Clare smiled into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck, weaving her fingers through his hair.

It was innocent, sweet, gentle. Perfectly Eli. It was everything Clare had remembered it to be, maybe even a little better.

Better because somehow, it had a way of expressing just _how _much they had missed each other in a way that words couldn't.

He pulled away with a sigh and rested his forehead against hers.

"I love you." He murmured, his breath fanning her lips.

Clare flashed him a wide smile. The kind of smile she hadn't smiled since they'd been apart.

"I love you, too, Eli." She said softly.

Suddenly, everything was in perspective. Neither of them cared about anything that had happened between them up to that point. They just knew they had to be together again.

Together now.

And for now, that was all that really mattered.


End file.
